Modern buildings may include three types of passenger conveyors, namely elevators, escalators and moving walkways. These devices have made moving within large buildings such as skyscrapers, airports and shopping malls faster and easier. This disclosure is directed towards escalators and moving walkways.
Escalators and moving walkways may occasionally need to be stopped for maintenance or in the case of an emergency, such as when a passenger is experiencing trouble with the system. Under normal circumstances, when an escalator or moving walkway is stopped, two things must occur. First, the motor powering the escalator or walkway, typically a powerful electrical motor, is deactivated. Second, at essentially the same time, a primary brake is applied to prevent movement of the escalator or walkway until it is reactivated for use.
However, in an emergency, or in the case of a system failure, the primary brake may not be operable and/or the deactivation of the motor may not take place. As a result, any unintended continued movement of the escalator or walkway could injure repair personnel, passengers or bystanders. Because of the importance of proper braking, it is typical to equip passenger conveyor systems with a second braking system to compliment the primary braking system, namely, an auxiliary braking system.
While the primary brake is typically located in the drive system and is used for routine stopping and holding of loaded or empty escalators, the auxiliary brake is an additional safety brake, usually found in the main drive assembly in the upper landing area. Auxiliary brakes are activated in accordance with local safety codes when conditions warrant. Both braking systems require space for installation and operation, and also require periodic inspection, repair, and maintenance.
Thus, while braking of a passenger conveyor is important, the way in which braking is accomplished in modem passenger conveyors may be improved to reduce the space requirements and financial cost imposed by dual (i.e., primary and auxiliary) braking systems as well as to improve reliability. To this end, a new auxiliary braking system for personnel conveyors is disclosed.